The Correctional Service of Canada is spending $1.7 billion dollars of our money to build new prisons across Canada to accommodate the anticipated boom in prisoner population that will inevitably result from the Conservative government’s massive crime bill. Despite the fact that even Republicans in Texas and California have acknowledged imprisoning people and building new prisons does not reduce crime, but does bankrupt the State, the Conservatives continue to pursue their agenda of prison construction at any cost. This means the further criminalization of communities of colour, immigrants, queer folks, drug users, and poor people. At the same time, public monies will be funneled into the private hands of the prison industrial complex.

The decision to build more prisons, despite dropping crime rates, is made by real people and implemented by real companies. NORR Ltd., a global professional services firm with a local office in Kingston, is one of those companies. David Jefferies (Principal) and architects David Ariss and Jonathan Hughes are directly responsible for the designs for the new units at Collins Bay and Bath. NORR offices are also designing the new provincial superjail to be located in Windsor, the South West Detention Centre.

The buildings NORR has designed are the leading edge of new prison construction in our community. Many of those effected by the new crime bill and by prison expansion will be here in Kingston, especially prisoners after they are released. The people of Kingston aren’t going to let this “law and order” agenda proceed without a fight!

Tell NORR Ltd., David Jefferies, David Ariss and Jonathan Hughes that you won’t stand by while they profit from the expansion of the prison industrial complex. Sign this petition to demand that NORR Ltd. issue a public statement declaring that they will not take on any more prison construction work.

End the Prison Industrial Complex!

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Is there any evidence that Norr or its Kingston architects have been involved in lobbying for the expansion of the prison system? If not, this seems like an absurd campaign: There are tons of people who benefit from building contracts, from masons to electricians to carpenters.

Unless they are exerting political pressure or engaging in corrupt practices to promote prison expansion, targeting them as a way of slowing or stopping prison expansion seems misdirected.

The focus should be the political actors responsible for the expansion of prisons, and the lobby and interest groups that are responsible for promoting this policy.

The NORR contracts to design new units at Collins Bay and Bath, as well as producing designs for the new superjail in Etobicoke, are well into the millions of dollars. Certainly we oppose lobbyists, interest groups and politicians that are pushing prison expansion just as strongly as we oppose the private sector profiteers that are cashing in on the contracts – our campaign did not begin nor will it end with NORR. These choices are made with strategic and ethical considerations in mind.